NEW YORK, March 31, 2026 -- The ASCAP Foundation announces the recipients of the 2026 Herb Alpert Young Jazz Composer Awards. Established in 2002, the program recognizes gifted young jazz composers up to the age of 30. It carries the name of the great trumpeter and ASCAP member Herb Alpert in recognition of The Herb Alpert Foundation’s multi-year financial commitment to the program. The recipients, who receive cash awards, are selected through a juried national competition.

“Each year, the Young Jazz Composer Awards shine a spotlight on the extraordinary creativity and promise of emerging jazz composers,” said ASCAP Foundation President Paul Williams. “We are deeply grateful for The Herb Alpert Foundation’s continued support in championing these remarkable young creators.”

“Together with The Herb Alpert Foundation, we have been privileged to nurture the next generation of jazz creators for more than two decades. We are honored to continue our support for the incredible young composers shaping this vital American artform,” said ASCAP Foundation Executive Director Patricia Leonard.

The 2026 ASCAP Foundation Herb Alpert Young Jazz Composer Award recipients are listed below with their age, current residence and place of origin. If under the age of 18, only the age and state are listed:

Miranda I. Agnew, age 27 of Brooklyn, NY (Tucson, AZ); Sam Chandler, age 25 of Duluth, MN; Hannah Claire, age 24 of Dallas, TX (Coeur de Alene, ID);  Rafael Enciso, age 26 of New York, NY (Ithaca, NY); Ariel Sha Glassman, age 30 of Chicago, IL (Dublin, OH); Sean Kiefer, age 21 of Cedar Falls, IA; Amos Landau, age 20 of Boston, MA (Jerusalem, Israel); Erik Larsen, age 29 of New York, NY (Visalia, CA); Aditi Malhotra, age 28 of Boston, MA (New Delhi, India); Hannah Marks, age 28 of Brooklyn, NY (Des Moines, IA); Will Robinson, age 18 of West Lake Village, CA (Thousand Oaks, CA); Denin Slage-Koch, age 30 of Knoxville, TN (Richland, WA); Izzy Stone, age 21 of Rochester, NY (Palo Alto, CA); Teresa (Naphatraphee) Um, age 24 of Denton, TX (Chiang Mai, Thailand) and Immanuel Wilkins, age 28 of Brooklyn, NY (Philadelphia, PA).

Composers receiving Honorable Mention this year are: Bella Amada, age 24 of Philadelphia, PA; Nick Mikhail, age 21 of Wayne, NJ; Klara Poznachowska, age 25 of Boston, MA (Warsaw, Poland); Noah A. Silver, age 16 of MA; Thomas Wandborg, age 28 of Los Angeles, CA (Hjoerring, Denmark) and Henry Zucarello, age 23 of Rochester, NY (Boston, MA).

Previous award recipients have earned Grammy recognition, including Matthew Whitaker and Remy LeBoeuf in 2026 and Zaccai Curtis, Emily Bear and Pascal LeBoeuf in 2025.

The ASCAP composers who judged the 2026 competition were: Lauren Elizabeth Baba, Aakash Mittal and Camille Thurman.

Additional funding for the program is provided by The ASCAP Foundation Bart Howard Fund.

About The Herb Alpert Foundation

The Herb Alpert Foundation, a non-profit, private foundation established in the early 1980's, makes significant annual contributions to a range of programs in the fields of Arts, Arts Education and Compassion and Well Being. Its funding is directed toward projects in which Herb and Lani Alpert and Foundation President Rona Sebastian play an active role. [The Foundation does not accept unsolicited proposals.]

About The ASCAP Foundation

Founded in 1975, The ASCAP Foundation is a charitable organization dedicated to supporting American music creators and encouraging their development through music education, talent development and humanitarian programs. Included in these are songwriting workshops, grants, scholarships, awards, recognition and community outreach programs. The ASCAP Foundation is supported by contributions from ASCAP members and from music lovers throughout the United States. www.ascapfoundation.org

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